Mark Johnson

Senior Cruiser

Profile Comments

Hi Mark, I've been reading one of the boards and you mention that someone in Florida had a trimran that had "Drastically raked transom". I've sailed on a few boats in my youth, and am really interested in trimarans. My wife calls it a midlife crisis, and fears that I will attempt to buy one and sail off into the sunset. I tell her that is non-sense, cause we are on the east coast, so I would have to sail off into the sunrise. :-)
Anyway, I assume the Amas are mostly the same length of the main hull for balance sake and stability. But I have been wondering why they could not be moved forward or backward, and how the boat would be affected sailing wise.
Thanks for any thoughts on the matter, I'm in Virginia, just north of you.
Take Care,

What is the best way to configure a downhaul on a big genny? Run through the hanks, attach to the halyard, the head, use a fair lead on deck, block? I can't douse the genny too well solo in high winds and nobody on the tiller.

Saw you used to have a seaclipper 28. I have a 1981. I was wondering if you had the plans still, or could scan a couple. Mainly just anything having to do with centerboard (mine needs replacing) and the rigging (traveler, and winches and winch installs etc) all my hardware is pretty much been ripped out by previous owner. I am debating selling mine, but also really wanna keep it!

Hello mark,
Saw your response to the solar panel issue. I have been thinking of putting my wind generator on the mizzen mast also but have read in some of the posts that there is too much force up there for it. Any concerns with that?

Mark, Call Steven Mann, who works for Fritz Richardson at Pacific Offshore Rigging in San Diego - 619.226.1252. He knows probably more about synthetics than anyone, AND, they are going to go into synthetic big time, with possible cost savings over your local options. The best time to contact him is about 9 AM Pacific time.

I have been away from the forum for a long time now, and just got back on again after getting an email from Jack Molan in Alaska. Wow, have you posted a lot of useful information in your recent posts. I hope to get back to the LA area sometime later this year and get back to work on my 34.

I am going to go back and re-read all your posts to glean what I can to help me in my refurbish job. I did put in new blocks for the centerboard just because the old ones were looking quite sad and one had frozen. I found some heavy duty stuff at a yard that sells all kinds of used boat stuff in Newport Beach and I adapted them to the trunk. They were working fine when I left last time down. I will try and get some decent pictures of my replacements on the next trip.

I never did answer your questions about the Sea of Cortez as a place to retire to. I think Jack would be a better person to comment on that than I, but I do feel it is a great place to winter. Summers can be dreadfully hot. My goal is to get ETAK down to San Carlos and do as Jack does: leave her on the hard on a trailer during the hot season and return each winter for several months of sailing when it is cold and gray here in western Oregon. I think the safety issue fine just like in the states. You need to know where NOT to go in Mexico and avoid those places. Mainly they are Ciudad Juarez across the river from El Paso, Torreon, and parts of Tijuana and the border areas where drugs pass through on their way north.

Great report you posted. Thanks for it. Jack Molan and I will be splicing a bunch of Dux for my Searunner 34 ETAK soon. He lives in Oregon, as I now do, and we will get together next week or so for this project. My boat is in the Long Beach, CA area and in need of lots of refurbishing. I go down each winter and get some of the work done. This winter I hope to finish up enough to move the 34 down to where Jack has his in the Sea of Cortez.

Daysailing and long range cruising, SCUBA & freediving, motorcycling, and the study of all "sciences".

Biography

Boat building, repair, renovation, maintenance, and the installation of all marine systems, has been both vocation and avocation for the last 45 years. I am now a consultant and author as well... Besides dozens of small boat projects, my three personal "cruising boat" projects were a 23' Wharram cat, a Seaclipper 28' tri, and our current 34' Searunner tri, Delphys. Together, these three boats took 21 years to build, and two of these were single handed projects... When not in work mode, I was a full time "liveaboard / cruiser" for over 15 years. We now cruise when ever we can.
Besides hundreds of local cruises and daysails, my wife and I have covered the US Gulf coast, with 4 Gulf crossings, numerous Keys & Bahamas trips, numerous transits of the the US East Coast, all over the Chesapeake, and both sides of the Caribbean, From the source rivers of the Rio Dulce in Guatemala, to as far down island as Trinidad. Still hoping for more!